Virginia Allen Jensen: September 1927—October 2014
- Virginia Allen JensenSeptember 1927—October 2014
VIRGINIA ALLEN JENSEN was born in Iowa, US, and grew up in a politically active and socially engaged family. In 1953, she married the Danish businessman Flemming Jensen and settled with him in Copenhagen; in 2013 they celebrated their 60th anniversary.
Always interested in language and literature, Virginia became an author of children’s books, and the founder and head of the publishing house Ibis and the agency ICBS (International Children’s Book Service) in 1962; she was in her late 70s before she reluctantly retired.
Virginia was a pioneer in creating tactile books that blind and non-handicapped children could share, such as What’s that? (Hvad er det? 1978), and other picture books that were translated into several languages, some of them illustrated by the Danish Hans Christian Andersen Award-winners Svend Otto S and Ib Spang Olsen, e.g. Lars-Peter’s birthday (Lars-Peters fødselsdag. 1959).
As an agent, Virginia promoted Danish authors to foreign publishers – e.g. Cecil Bødker and Bjarne Reuter, respectively winner of the Andersen medal and a two-time Andersen finalist – as well as foreign authors and illustrators worldwide, e.g. Jostein Gaarder, not only European, but also from non-European continents and cultures. She was the organizer of the Nordic publishers’ presence in Bologna 1972-1996.
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Virginia Allen Jensen in 2012
Virginia attended most IBBY Congresses, from the one in Rio de Janeiro 1974 to the congress in Copenhagen 2008, and was a member of the board of IBBY Denmark for some time. She prepared many of the dossiers for the Danish Andersen nominations, and organized exhibitions and catalogues, e.g. for the IBBY Congress in Oslo 1988.
She had a high and uncompromising sense of quality, that would always have a higher priority than deadlines, and was a true cosmopolitan networker, committed to the values and goals of IBBY. Personally, I have known Virginia since 1980 as helpful, generous and caring - a truly lovely person who will be much missed by her family and friends.
To those who wish to know a bit more about Virginia Allen Jensen, I recommend Suzie Yakowicz’ article “Danish children’s author Virginia Allen Jensen spread reading”: https://suite.io/susie-yakowicz/4tx22y5 [End Page 95]
